Dear Whitman Families and Community,

We want to take a moment and acknowledge the pain and grief that is currently taking place in our community and across the country.  Our hearts break for the continued violence inflicted upon Black members of our society.  The death of George Floyd has once again highlighted racially motivated violence in this country and the catastrophic killing of unarmed Black Americans. Whitman believes Black Lives Matter!  As educators, it is our charge to work to dismantle institutional racism and interrupt the cycle.  We commit to continually working towards this.

We commit to:

• Taking actions to become anti-racist allies.

• Building inclusive and affirming spaces for our students of color.

• Stopping racist acts when we see or hear them happening at Whitman.

• Celebrating and honoring Black members of our community. 

• Listening to our Black students when they tell us their stories and share their points of view.

• Taking a position of social justice that challenges the roles of power, privilege and oppression.

• Actively working to educate ourselves in matters of racism and especially how racism affects the education system and our learning communities.

• Ensuring that ALL students feel a sense of belonging at Whitman

We encourage you to open up space for your children to talk about what they're seeing and how they're feeling; to create a space to respond openly, honestly, and with compassion and empathy.  Here are some resources on how to talk with your children about race, please consider starting with these websites:

Your Kids Aren't Too Young to Talk About Race: Resource Roundup

New Smithsonian Site on Race

How to Talk to Kids about Race and Racism

Books to Support Conversations with kids

Maggie Mae Books  -  Local Book Store 

https://www.colorincolorado.org/article/15-tips-talking-children-about-school-violence

We look forward to working together with you in the coming months and years to do better for our students, as we continue to foster a truly anti-racist community.

Respectfully and in the effort to empower our young people with social justice,

The Whitman Staff

Queridas Familias de Whitman y Comunidad,

Queremos tomar un momento y reconocer el dolor y pena que está pasando en nuestra comunidad y a través del país. Se nos rompe el corazón de ver la violencia continúa hacia nuestros miembros negros de la sociedad. La muerte de George Floyd ha subrayado de nuevo la violencia racialmente motivada en este país y el asesinato catastrofico de Americanos negros sin armas. Nuestra escuela cree que las vidas negras importan! Como educadores, es nuestro trabajo deshacer el racismo institucional y romper el ciclo. Estamos comprometidos a trabajar continuamente en esto.

Nos comprometemos a:

• Tomar acciones para convertirnos en aliados anti-racistas.

• Construir espacios inclusivos y afirmativos para todos nuestros estudiantes de color.

• Parar actos racistas cuando los observamos o escuchamos que estén pasando en Whitman.

• Celebrar y honrar miembros negros de nuestra comunidad.

• Escuchar a nuestros estudiantes negros cuando nos dicen historias y compartir sus puntos de vista.

• Tomar una posición de justicia social que rete las posiciones de poder, privilegio y opresión.

• Trabajar activamente para educarnos en temas de racismo y, especialmente, cómo el racismo afecta el sistema educativo y nuestras comunidades de aprendizaje.

• Asegurar que TODOS nuestros estudiantes se sientan bienvenidos en Whitman.

Los invitamos a abrir un espacio con sus hijos para hablar acerca de lo que están viendo y cómo se sienten al respecto; crear un espacio para responder abiertamente, honestamente, y con compasión y empatía. Aquí hay algunos recursos de cómo hablar con sus hijos acerca de raza, por favor considere comenzar con estas páginas de internet:

Your Kids Aren't Too Young to Talk About Race: Resource Roundup

New Smithsonian Site on Race

How to Talk to Kids about Race and Racism

Books to Support Conversations with kids

Maggie Mae Books  -  Local Book Store 

https://www.colorincolorado.org/article/15-tips-talking-children-about-school-violence

Estamos emocionados de trabajar juntos con ustedes en los próximos meses y años para ser mejor para nuestros estudiantes, mientras continuamos creando una comunidad realmente anti-racista. 

Con mucho respeto y con el esfuerzo de empoderar a nuestros jóvenes con justicia social,

El Personal de Whitman

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